Philosophy of Composition Essays

This is an interesting essay by Edgar Allan Poe that I had never heard of nor obviously read. I thoroughly enjoyed this piece by Poe.
Poe was an advocate of rational composition rather than romantic effusions, meaning that Poe believed in writing in a rational, logical way as opposed to an unrestrained, heartfelt or emotional way.
In his “Philosophy of Composition” he goes into a sequential, step by step methodology of the construction of the Raven. In so doing he also discusses the writing process in general along the way. He is very purposeful in his craft and goes to the extreme to have a purpose of each and every word and sentence, selected and crafted to provide an element of the story.
His writing method is predetermined and intentional instead of a flowing of ideas. The Raven is carefully and systematically constructed.
He begins by discussing the important of a story’s denouement (“the final revelation showing the outcome, or untying of the plot” from the French “untie”) and coincidentally, as I say this, he actually and literally begins his story with this. He simply knows what he is going to write before he begins to write it, he knows the outcome of the story first and he then writes around that particular outcome.
It is interesting to note that many people did not believe that this is actually the way he wrote The Raven. Along that belief it’s interesting to note the paragraph that Poe dedicates to the author who is questioned by his public as to how he wrote and how many authors would be reluctant to explain their writing process. He explains how the writer might prefer to by omission, have the audience thereby assume that the writer is so gifted that he sat down and just wrote it all out somewhat magically or effortlessly, due to his great talent. He explains though that the reason that authors didn’t want to divulge their writing process was that in truth there was a pile of mistakes , drafts and errors that the writer compiled and were tossed and thrown in the trash to ultimately get the results he wanted.
He explains: “Most writers – poets in especial – prefer having it understood that they compose by a species of fine frenzy – an ecstatic intuition – and would positively shudder at letting the public take a peep behind the scenes, at the elaborate and vacillating crudities of thought – at the true purposes seized only at the last moment- at the innumerable glimpses of idea that arrived not at the maturity of full view- at the fully matured fancies discarded in despair as unmanageable - at cautious selections and rejections - at the painful erasures and interpolations – in a word, at the wheels and pinions- the tackle for scene shifting- the step ladders and demon traps- the cock’s feather, the red paint and the black patches, which in ninety nine cases out of the hundred, constitute the properties of the literary histrio (artist)”.

He also gives the disclaimer of the fact that it could be the author simply cannot retrace his steps when memory fails him. I like the way he says “In general, suggestions, having arisen pell-mell, are pursued and forgotten in a similar manner”. I had to look up the word “pell-mell” and had to smile when I saw that it was “in a hurrying and disorderly fashion”, I must admit as a writer myself, this paragraph, summed up with this statement, best described my own writing process. It was nice to hear that I do not suffer alone along those frustrating lines. Not to say that my writing is anything even remotely as good as Poe, for that matter, I wouldn’t even call myself a writer when the same word is used to describe him. Perhaps I am a fledgling writer, or writer want to be, whatever it is, it seems there should be a new word to describe the huge difference. The desire to do something and yet not the ability to do it is…

Related Documents: Philosophy of Composition Essays

Composition of Matter
I. Pure Substances
i. A pure substance is either an element or a compound
ii. Substances cannot be broken down into simpler components and still maintain the properties of the original substance
a. Elements
i. If all atoms in a substance are alike, that substance is an element.
ii. There are 90 elements found in nature
b. Compounds
iii. A compound is a substance in which atoms of two or more elements are combined…

ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION
SECTION I
Time­ 1 Hour
Directions: This part consists of selections from prose works and questions based on their
content, form, and style. After each passage, choose the best answer to each question and
completely fill in the corresponding circle on the answer sheet.
Note: Pay particular attention to the requirement of questions that contain the words NOT,
LEAST, or EXCEPT.
Questions 1­11. Read the following passage
carefully before you choose your answers…

Michla Winbush
Ms. Brooks
Composition I
November 13, 2014
In Langston Hughes' poem, “I, Too,” he addresses the insult of segregation, inequality, and prejudice. There are many specific ways that America as a whole suffers from these three broad categories. Historically, African Americans have suffered from inequality, prejudice, and the insult of segregation in almost every aspect of their lives. The matter of African Americans being treated unequally still exists in today's society. Although…

My program of Study
The program that I am enrolled in is Special Education and General Education a (dual major). Some of the course that is required for my major is English Composition I & II this particular class will help me enhance my rhetorically effectively. I will have all the tools that I need after completing these courses. Some of the tools I will imply to my future students they will be using correct grammar and punctuation marks. I will also be required to take Instructional Technology…

EN1320 Composition 1 Module 5
Mrs. Clark
February 21, 2014
Clergyman John C. Maxwell once stated, “The greatest mistake we make is living in constant fear that we will make one.” Growing up in a family of seven to second generation immigration farm workers, the passion to improve upon my conditions was instilled by my paternal grandparents. They sacrificed more than they thought possible in the hope that an opportunity would change their lives for the better. Much…

Major Composition – Saturday Ellison
Dancers: Zoe Etcell, Sharni Whetu and Isabel Carmona
Concept/Intent:
My concept/intent is to explore the transmission of infectious disease and would like to communicate to the audience different ways the common cold is spread, the symptoms and the emotions of isolation.
The form of my concept is a narrative, and I chose this to communicate the stages of infection through characters of a story, in which each dancer gets sick throughout the dance because…

Composition and Conveyance
COM/170
February 15, 2012
Composition and Conveyance
If a person speaks because they have something to say, why then does one compose music? Is there some sort of standard that determines when one is the more logical choice? Should there be? When someone reads or hears a line of dialogue that sticks, it doesn’t matter if there is music attached to it because it stands alone. It would be futile to try and put music to words that were intended to convey something powerful…

Alex Sutton
Poetry Composition essay
Hesseltine
2/27/15
Prompt: The Power within poetry inspires the reader to create meaning and beauty for oneself.
In “Introduction to poetry” and “On First Looking Into Chapman’s Homer” both want to spark a fire of a deeper level of understanding, beauty, and fun. In Collins’s poem the feeling of thinking about the meaning of the poem combines with the idea of poems don’t necessarily obligated to be a task but could be a pleasant and enjoyable surprise. “I want…

ESL 105
Composition Assignment
A. The composition must follow this format:
1) Typed and not hand-written.
2) Double-spaced, 1 inch margin, font size 12, Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri.
3) Have appropriate heading (your name, class, teacher’s name, date) and title.
4) Include page numbers (preferably at the lower right-hand corner of the paper).
5) 5 pages in length (you may add more)
B. Submission:
You must submit the paper in person. You will lose points if you submit it by e-mail…

Words 385 - Pages 2

* Test names and other trademarks are the property of the respective trademark holders. None of the trademark holders are affiliated with this website.